Cage
by Majokai Yukiko
Summary: [Completed] Encaged by his family, Remus Lupin found his sanctuary in Hogwarts, where he met another boy who was as trapped as he was by his family's fame, riches and darkness.
1. Prologue: Platform 9 34

**Cage | Prologue **

**A Harry Potter Fanfiction by Majokai Yukiko**

**Pairing: Sirius + Remus**

**Warnings: Slash. **

**This is an amateur effort and does not intend to infringe on the rights of J K Rowling, Scholastic Books and their associates. **

A/N: My sisters bought me the fifth book for my birthday. Although I love it, I'm afraid they had got me drowned in the deep end of the pool: writing Fanfiction when I should be studying for my O.W.L.S this year. [Or the muggle equivalent of it anyway]

--

Prologue: Platform Nine And Three-Quarters 

An eleven-year old Remus Lupin looked worriedly around the London Train Station. The young boy shifted his weight from one foot to another, his wide amber eyes darting around the crowded station. People from all around pushed past him, trying to get to their workplace before it started to rain again. They were mostly non-wizarding folks though, or muggles, as his parents often referred to them as. 

His own mother had refused to send him to the platform and left him to fend for his own, looking for the hidden platform between Platform No 9 and 10. 

What should I do now? Remus got more worried as time slowly ticked past. He was going to miss his train and lost the only chance he had at a normal childhood. If he could not go to school, he would have to return to that cursed Lupin family and spent the rest of his life under the shadows of his family name. 

As the small boy stood helplessly at the station and scared himself witless, a slight commotion came just in time to save Remus from his panic. 

"Look," the young girl who was standing next to him whispered to his friend. "It's the Malfoy and Black heirs." 

Remus was startled. He spun around a little too fast; tripping over somebody's foot and almost fell on his nose if not for the pair of strong arms who had rescued him from that fate. 

"Be careful." The brunette nodded weakly and got back his balance. When he looked up to mutter his thanks, he found himself drowning in a pair of dark blue eyes. They were the color of the night, almost to the point of black. There was only one wizarding family with that shade of eyes, and Remus knew much about them from his parents. 

He was face to face with Sirius Black, the eldest son of one of the noblest and richest pureblood family in the community, second only to the Malfoys: the Blacks. 

Sirius seemed to have noticed the look of fear and slight intrigue on Remus' face. He smiled in amusement, his eyes lightening to a regular dark blue with warmth. 

"Hey." Sirius greeted. "You alright?" 

Once again, Remus nodded dumbly, having found himself speechless. What could the son of a penniless wizarding family (even if he was a pureblood) say before the heir to the Black family?

Sirius Black seemed to be oblivious towards what the other boy was feeling, either that or he was too used to such a reaction to care. The dark haired boy shrugged, sweeping some of his wayward bangs away from his eyes with a careless gesture, and then stuck out that hand at Remus. 

"Sirius Black. You are?"

Remus' brain finally registered that he was being asked a question after some time. He looked down at his own shabby robes and blushed in embarrassment. He muttered his name softly. 

Sirius frowned, leaning in closer. "What did you say again? I didn't quite catch your name."

"Black, we are running late." A pale boy with white blonde hair stepped forward and placed a hand on Sirius's shoulder. Sirius's frown grew deeper and shrugged off the hand violently, almost in anger. 

"You can run along with your tagalongs first, Malfoy. I'm sure my cousin is more than willing to go with you." With that, Sirius threw a quick glance at the black-haired girl standing a couple of steps from them, trying hard to hide behind a pillar with a bright pink tint on her face. 

Remus watched the entire exchange with interest. It was his first day of school and already he had met the heirs of the two most influential families in the wizarding world. The pale boy was Lucius Malfoy. He had money, power and an attitude. The shy girl was called Narcissus Black, cousin to Sirius Black; while the boy that currently had his interest set on Remus was of course Sirius Black himself.

There were rumors that Sirius Black had always been considered the black sheep of his family, but these rumors were never allowed to be confirmed, as like all others which had negative effects to the reputation of the Blacks.  Seeing the obvious tension between the two heirs, Remus had reason to suspect the rumors were not rumors after all. 

"I'm sorry." Sirius Black turned his attention back to Remus and offered an apologetic smile. "I've got to run now, I'll see if I can talk to you on the train later."

" 'Kay." Remus smiled back, for the first time and watched the dark haired boy run through a pillar and disappeared. He had found his way to Platform Nine and Three-Quarters after all. 

***

End of Prologue

Continue to Chapter 1


	2. Chapter 1: Arriving at Hogwarts

**Cage | Chapter 1**

**A Harry Potter Fanfiction by Majokai Yukiko**

**Pairing: Remus + Sirius**

**Warning: Slash. **

**Timeline: Marauders' First Year**

**This is an amateur effort and does not intend to infringe on the rights of J K Rowling, Scholastic Books and their associates. **

---

Chapter 1: Arriving At Hogwarts 

"Four to a boat!" The giant who had introduced himself as Hagrid bellowed. Remus gulped, watching the dark murky waters fearfully. He looked around and ten stepped into an empty vessel with a look of determination on his face. The lake was the only thing between him and Hogwarts now; there was no way he would let that deter him from a new life, away from his family. 

"Is this take, or can we join in?' Remus looked up from his reflections in the water to the bright smile of a young bespectacled boy. His dark brown hair fell messily over his face, framing a pair of bright blue eyes. Blue, like Sirius', but unlike the Black heir, this boy had cornflower eyes the color of the sky at midday. 

Day and night, light and darkness; Remus made the mental connection.

Beside him was a small chubby boy with beadlike eyes. Remus smiled reassuringly and moved aside a little, making enough space for two. 

Suddenly, from somewhere not far from them was a yelp followed by a loud splash. But before Remus could figure out what had happened, he had to grab onto the sides of the boat as the vessel rocked dangerously. 

"Hurry!" Sirius Black laughed and hopped into Remus' boat, gesturing wildly at the other two boys. Taking the cue, they stepped into the boat as well. 

"SIRIUS BLACK!" Gulp. Choke. "I SWEAR I'LL GET YOUR FOR THIS!" Black only made a face and then laughed louder. 

The boy with glasses joined in the laughing fit when he realized who Sirius Black had pushed into water. 

"Hey, Snape, about time you wash all that oil off your hair!" Then, he turned around, introducing himself and the plump boy next to him. 

"My name is James Potter, and this is Peter Pettigrew." 

"Sirius Black." The dark haired boy replied, wiping another tear from his eyes, watching in amusement how Narcissus drag a very angry and very wet Severus Snape onto her boat with Lucius Malfoy. 

Finally, Sirius faced Remus with a sheepish grin on his face. "Sorry, I couldn't get you on the train just now. And you haven't told me your name yet."

"Remus Lupin."

His grin grew into a smile. Sirius was about to say something else before he was interrupted. 

"Sirius Black?! You are THE Sirius Black? But…" Peter paused in his gushing, a look of admiration mixed with a tinge of confusion in his small eyes. "…just now, Snape and Malfoy…"

Sirius picked up two oars and tossed one over at James to get the boat moving. "Snape needs a wash. Or at least his hair does." Snicker. 

Remus watched silently as a childish conversation on Snape's greasy hair struck off between James and Sirius. It was as if they had known each other all their lives, and not strangers who had just met. His previous impression of the Black heir, heard from his mother's lips, shattered. Sirius Black never once behaved as if he were better than any of them. Instead, Remus swore he see Sirius wrinkled up his nose in disgust whenever Lucius Malfoy and his posse were mentioned. 

"So, what house do you think you will in?" Peter suddenly squeaked. "James wants to be in Gryffindo, but I thought I'd probably end up in Hufflepuff." He did not continue, but simply lowered his head and blushed. 

Remus took Peter's hand and patted it gently. "There's nothing embarrassing in wanting to be with friends, as long as they'll have you." Sad amber eyes flickered to the distorted reflection of the moon in the water. It was only a half moon, but well; at least he would get to keep this set of friends for a week.  

"Those that don't stick around are not friends." James added, placing his hands on top of Remus' and Peter's. Sirius looked uneasily at the joined hands, shrugged and continued to paddle on. 

***

"You take that back about Lily!" Remus turned around to see an incensed redhead holding Lucius by the collar. He moved to get a closer look but was stopped by a hand on his shoulder. 

"Sirius?" The black haired boy shook his head and walked up tot eh pair himself. Remus, James and Peter only stood there and watched. 

"Did I say anything wrong? She IS a mudblood, isn't she?" The redhead was livid. He pulled back his arm and was about to deliver a blow right onto Lucius' jaw when Sirius strutted up to them with an arrogant sneer on his face. 

"I won't do that if I were you, Arthur Weasley." Sirius smirked, very gently but firmly prying Arthur's fingers off Lucius' expensive robe. "I'm afraid your parents can't afford to pay for even the slightest bruise on Lucius' pretty face."

Remus, James and Peter were shocked. Sirius was behaving very much differently from the way he was just moments ago. It was the heir to the Black family fortune they were looking at now. Not Sirius, but Black; the boy with deep blue eyes could exude enough arrogance to put even the Malfoys to shame. 

Lucius, although irritated and upset about being teased "pretty" by his friend, was pleased to see Black sticking up for him. He knew, better than anyone else, that Sirius Black cold be a through and through high-nosed git if he had wanted to. There were two men living inside Sirius, but even Malfoy had seldom seen the Black heir coming through. 

The pale boy smirked.

"Sod off, Black." Arthur hissed. 

"How hurting, Arthur. I just hate to see purebloods at strife over a…" Black let his eyes glance briefly at Lily Evans before continuing. 

"Mudblood." He spat. "Although I can hardly put the Weasleys on the same pedestal as the Blacks or the Malfoys, can I?"

A veil of whispered commotion fell over the rest of the First Years. Obviously, Black's speech had caused much disapproval from the crowd. But who dare speak up against the heir?

"Of course not, Black." Remus could not take it any longer. A painful hurt raised up fro his chest. Was this really the boy that, just moments ago, he had considered as friend? "Nobody but you goes lower than the level of trash."

Remus watched with sick enjoyment how Sirius' jaw dropped open in shock, staring unbelievably at the smaller boy. 

"First years, will you follow me please?" 

Peter tugged timidly on Remus' sleeve. The brunette allowed himself to be pulled along, but not before fixing Sirius Black with a cold hard stare. 

"Let's go, Sirius." Narcissus urged, not realizing that someone else was also watching Remus Lupin with fascination in his eyes. 

+++

End of Chapter 1

Continue to Chapter 2


	3. Chapter 2: New Friends, Old Fears

**Cage | Chapter 2**

**A Harry Potter Fanfiction By Majokai Yukiko**

**Pairing: Remus + Sirius**

**Warning: Slash. **

**This is an amateur effort and does not intend to infringe on the rights of J K Rowling, Scholastic Books and their associates. **

A/N: To say the truth, I am a very insecure girl. I need reassurances…regularly. So 5 reviews for a new chapter, fine with you guys?

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"I can't believe it!" Arthur Weasley shouted, tossing his bag down onto the couch in the Gryffindor common room in frustration. "Does the Sorting Hat need mending? Sirius Black?! In Gryffindor?!"

Remus remained silent, all the while digging into his pockets for a Chocolate Frog. His smooth forehead creased into a frown. 

"Hey, any one have got a bit of chocolates to spare?" The young boy asked, now relocating his hunt to his luggage. He was sure he had a stash somewhere; surely he had not finished them on the train just now. 

"Here, you can have mine."

A bright smile spread across Remus' face, not realizing that the entire common room had fallen into an uncomfortable silence. He looked up, about to thank his chocolate supplier when he realized just whom he was. 

Sirius Black grinned uneasily, shifting his weight from one foot to another in an unconscious gesture. One hand was tucked protectively into his jeans pocket, another was holding out a container with the red words NUTELLA painted on its label. His ebony hair was tussled, lips red and swollen. Sirius had removed his cloak, but the muggle clothing he wore underneath it was heavy with the sick scent of thick perfume. 

"Whoa! What happened to you?" James Potter pushed his glasses higher up his nose and stared at the mess the other boy was in. The rest of the common room was staring too, a soft 'Tsk Tsk' could be heard from the portrait of the Fat Lady at the door. "You looked…shagged." 

"Er…" Whatever image Sirius had created earlier in the First-years' minds were banished at once when he blushed. A bright pink tint colored his cheeks as he pulled his hand out of his pockets and started to tug at the collar of his shirt, trying to savage as much of his decency as possible. 

"My cousin Bellatrix had just decided to er…"

"Give you a very warm welcome." Remus completed for him, finally taking pity on the embarrassed boy and coming to his rescue. It was just not like him to leave someone in the lurch. Even if they really do deserve it. 

Sirius nodded. Remus cocked his head to one side as if in puzzlement and then took the NUTELLA from the boy's hand. 

"What's this?" Amber eyes blinked unfamiliarly at the label, successfully distracting the common room from Sirius' elusive session with his cousin as everybody began to crowd around the pair, wanting to know what the curious looking bottle hold. 

"It's a muggle chocolate product. I bought it at London before I board the train. Heard that it's just chocolate though."

Arthur's eyes brightened up like that of a child who had just seen Santa. He jostled himself closer to Remus, taking a long hard look at the bottle with the red and white label on it. Would it be rude to ask Remus if he could have some of it?

Sirius Black bit lightly on his lower lip, looking like he was contemplating something before he pulled out a thin slice of aluminum-wrapped something from his shirt pocket and held it out to the redhead.  

"Another muggle sweet I got from the store. It's called chewing gum, apparently, it tastes sweet but you are not supposed to swallow it, just chew out all the sweetness."

The gum was placed in the middle of his palm. The invitation was obvious. 

Arthur glanced down from the outstretched hand to the sincere but nervous smile on the Black heir's face. He took it, wrapping his hand around the other in a handshake and accepted the gift graciously. 

"Friends."

"Friends." They grinned. 

From then on, Sirius Black became one of the most popular in Gryffindor and in Hogwarts itself. His clean cut good looks and easy going smile had won him many heart shaped glances from the female population of the school. Even some of the professors took on a certain dreamy tone when talking to him. 

Sirius never talked to his housemates about his family, his wealth, or the friends that he had grown up with. He made an effort never to be seen around Lucius Malfoy, Severus Snape, Narcissus or any of the Slytherins whose family he was familiar with before. It was as if some sort of a truce had taken place between he and them too. He would not bother himself with them, and they would not talk to his family about his 'wayward' behavior and earn the heir some ill-deserved Howlers. 

James Potter and Sirius Black soon became fast friends. They were almost joined at the hip, never seen far apart from each other. Together with them most of the time were Remus Lupin, and Peter Pettigrew. 

One week passed. And the second week of school was about to come to an end. Remus noted with expected misery the rounding of the moon. Soon, it would be the full moon. Friends come and go with fashion. They never lasted. Not for him, at least. 

"Ah….AHHHHHHHHHH!"

"REMUS! Wake up! It's just a nightmare…a bad dream…Wake up!" Sirius Black watched in worry how his friend tossed and turned in his dreams, tormented by inner demons that he could not reach, could not protect the soft-spoken boy from. He gritted his teeth painfully and reached out to try shaking Remus awake again. 

A hand snaked out from beneath the covers and pulled Sirius down onto the soft bed. "Oof!" Sirius let out, his head coming in sudden contact with the pillow. Strong hands held him firm and unmovable, knees pressing down ruthlessly on his thighs. 

"What are you trying to do, Black?"

"Nothing! Remus, I swear. You looked like you were having a nightmare. I just want to wake you!" Sirius defended himself, struggling uselessly against the strong grip. 

Damn, why have I never realized how strong Remus is? He will be a darn good Beater if he uses this strength on that damn Bludger…

The dark haired boy stopped when he found himself looking into Remus' eyes. That was another thing he had not noticed about Remus until now. The boy had beautiful eyes. Amber gold orbs with flecks of preternatural silver in them; ginger brown hair falling over his brows, framing a heart shaped flawless face. Sirius could not believe that an introverted shy Remus Lupin could have such wild eyes, like that of a wild beast. 

Almost feral…

The silver bits dimmed a little as Remus readjusted him, releasing his iron grip on his friend. A guilty expression crossed his face for a moment, so fast that Sirius thought he had imagined it. But no, it was definitely that. Eyes of melted gold glazed over in hurt and remorse, casting a weak vulnerable shadow on the boy. Sirius wanted to gather his friend into his arms and help him keep his demons at bay. 

But he did not.

"I'm sorry, Siri." Remus lowered his head and whispered. "But you won't tell anyone what I just did, right?"

Sirius Black was never the sort to tell tales. But even if he was, the pleading tone in Remus' voice could break any cold heart into small smithereens. 

Sirius pushed himself off the bed and ruffled Remus' hair affectionately. "Your secret's safe with me, Hercules." He teased with a cheeky smile tugging at the edge of his lips. 

***

"Have you heard it?" Peter asked Remus anxiously as they made their way into the Great Hall. Remus shrugged uncomfortably, conscious of the strange glances he was receiving from the rest of the student population, especially those from the Gryffindor table. 

The full moon was tonight. Tonight was the night if he lost his friends if he were unlucky. If he was lucky, the relationship might be able to last till next month or the month after. But Remus was certain that by the end of the first year, he would no longer be able to look at James, Peter or Sirius and smile inhibited again. 

He had nearly attacked Sirius the night before. Wait, he had attacked the other boy. It was pure stroke of luck that he had not caused Sirius any permanent injury. But who could guarantee that he would be as fortunate the second or the third time?

"Heard what?" Remus turned his attention back to the small boy beside him. He had either a day or a month. Till then, he would treat his friends as well as he could. 

"Sirius nominated you on the Quidditch team as a Beater this morning!"

Remus' eyebrows shot up and disappeared under his brow. A 'WHAT?!' was hanging right at the tip of his tongue, waiting for him to yell it out for the entire school to hear. All his friends should know he was the earthbound sort, uncomfortable with flying as much as a fish was with being out of water. What was Sirius thinking?

The dark haired boy's nickname for him came to mind immediately. Hercules…wasn't that the name of a superhero with abnormal strength in Greek muggle mythology?

Oh God…

Remus grabbed tightly onto a white pillar. His entire world was spinning out of focus. It was over. All was over. Sirius…he knew. 

The first thing that came to Remus' mind was to run. Run far away from Hogwarts and make sure he was never seen or heard of again. He would have bear with anything and everything, but scorn and hatred in his friends' eyes. This…this was practically betrayal!

What do you expect? A dark inner voice spoke up from within him. 

He was a Black after all. Do you really believe that he could be a friend to you?

"Remus…you okay…?"

"He promised…he promised he wouldn't tell…" The brunette muttered confusedly to himself, stumbling over his own feet as he bolted off, leaving behind a disorientated and very frightened Peter in the corridors. 

He should never have been to Hogwarts at all. 

---

End of Chapter 2

To Be Continued 


	4. Chapter 3: The First Full Moon

**Cage | Chapter 3**

**A Harry Potter Fanfiction By Majokai Yukiko**

**Pairing: Remus + Sirius**

**Warning: Slash. [Pre-slash actually…they are still too young.]**

**This is an amateur effort and does not intend to infringe on the rights of J K Rowling, Scholastic Books and their associates. **

A/N: I love you guys! I really do! My classmates just joked about how ecstatic I look after I checked my mail during lunch that day. But really, those reviews make my day! Keep them coming!

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Chapter 3: The First Full Moon 

Remus Lupin felt tears prick at his eyes. He would not cry. He had not cried since his first full moon after the attack, he would certainly not cry over wayward loyalties right now. He had given all his tears to the moon, or so he thought. 

He kept running, not bothering to look at where he was going. Instinct told him to run, as far from Hogwarts as possible. Run and hide somewhere where he would know no one and no one would know him, somewhere where him being a werewolf would not matter, somewhere where the full moon would never come. Somewhere like death. 

Somebody crashed into him when he turned a corner. Remus was about to mutter a halfhearted apology and leave when strong hands grabbed onto the sides of his arms firmly but gently. A familiar voice spoke up.

"Remus? You okay? Why are you crying?"

Sirius Black vaguely considered picking up his Daily Prophet from the floor where he had dropped it. He was only halfway through the crossword after all. But Remus' tear-stricken face demanded for him to ignore everything except for the smaller boy. 

His protective instinct flared high and strong within him. It was a feeling that Sirius never thought he possessed. He had never felt the need to protect anything, all thanks to his upbringing and the peers he had been raised with. Selfish bastards like Malfoy and Snape never deserved to be protected, they were meant to be made use of. That was the Blacks' definition of friend. 

All these changed when he met Remus. The shy young boy with intelligence and hidden strength shining through those soft amber eyes; Remus was the epitome of hidden vulnerability. Sirius was not sure at first. But after last night…he realized what those eyes were trying to tell him all these while. 

They were pleading for help. 

"Remus? What happened?"

How dare he?! Remus silently yelled, staring at Sirius' handsome face with anger and disgust. After all that he had done, after that horrible betrayal, Sirius Black still dared to ask him what was wrong?

"You happened." Remus spat bitterly, the fury grew in his chest as he took in the bewildered look on Sirius' face. Who was the boy trying to kid? Did he really think Remus as gullible?

The tears that he was trying so hard to control now flowed freely down his cheeks. It was so easy, so easy to believe that the other boy had truly cared about him. A part of him had actually wanted to believe in Sirius. 

"Me? What did I do?"

"SIRIUS!" James Potter ran up towards the duo with a red tint along his cheeks, probably caused by his hurried sprint from the tower. "Good to find you two here. You can't believe what that creep of a Malfoy did…Remus? Remus, are you listening?"

Sirius loosened his hold on his friend, now sincerely worried over Remus' strange behavior. What was wrong with him today? The black haired boy thought, looking at James for help. But the bespectacled boy could only shrugged helplessly, watching Remus carefully from the corner of his eyes. He had an idea what was going on. But that would have to wait. 

"Remus…" Sirius reached out, wondering if he should wipe the tears from Remus' face, tears that were already turning the boy's eyes and nose into an awful shade of red. 

"DON'T TOUCH ME!"

Remus angrily slapped the hand away and pushed Sirius out of his way, running and disappearing down the corridors. 

Sirius watched silently, deep blue eyes glazed over briefly with hurt and looked at James again. 

"You were saying…?" He asked, picking up the Prophet and continued his way to the Great Hall with his friend. 

***

"He did WHAT?" Sirius bellowed. The Great Hall fell into an uncomfortable silence. All eyes were on the Gryffindor Table, more accurately, at the Black heir, who was standing upright with his fists clenched tightly at his side. 

James nodded solemnly, tossing a look at the Slytherin table, where Lucius Malfoy were, looking at them with a fearful expression in his eyes.

Not so brave now huh? Sirius thought to himself, too noticing Malfoy's expression. As Sirius leisurely strolled towards the Slytherin table with purposeful strides… everybody in the Hall turned to watch. They had never saw the two Heirs stood up against each other before. This promised to be a good show. 

"Hey, Lucius," Sirius started casually. It would have been an innocent hello, if anyone had not known better. But the glint in Sirius' eyes spoke of unspeakable danger and barely concealed violence. 

The Blacks were never known for pacifism. 

Lucius gulped and tried to smile at his old friend. He had seen the "Black heir" persona coming in play once or twice, but he had never been on the other side of the river when he happened. For some reason, being caught under Black's eyes, the pale boy suddenly felt the urge to run. Very fast, and hopefully, very far. 

"I always knew you were an insufferable arrogant bastard, but I never knew you to be a liar too." Sirius pulled out the empty chair beside Malfoy and sat down on it. A terrified Crabbe, who had run with his tail between his legs when Sirius first began walking over, had left the chair empty. 

"Now, dear James Potter over there," he waved mindlessly in the direction of the Gryffindor table, and then leant an arm on the chair, a smirk dancing on his lips. "He just told me that little Quibbler story of yours this morning. Now, what makes you think, that I, Sirius Black, will nominate Lupin for the Quidditch team? Or did you just made that out from the empty air in your head?"

Lucius had always been pale. But now, he was blanched. He knew the consequences if he said the truth, but Sirius' dark eyes were practically daring him to even try lying in his face. He swallowed another imaginary lump in his throat and nodded. 

"Ah…good to know that you still tell the truth more often. Isn't it easier to be honest? Make use of all that limited amount of brain cells you have on something else, dear friend." Sirius stood up and patted Malfoy heartily on his back before walking back to his place. 

Lucius sat still, not daring to move, not daring to breathe. He was that close to a very painful and ugly death. Although Sirius had barely laid a finger on him, the darkness that seemed to radiate from the boy's very soul had frightened him to the core. 

His robes suddenly felt very heavy, a foul smell emaciating from them. Lucius looked down, and blushed bright red. 

He had wet his pants.

***

Sirius spent the entire day looking over his shoulder in class, checking out the empty seat across the aisle from him over and over again. He had wished, by his will alone, he could get Remus Lupin to reappear in the classroom and smiled at him, the way he had always done so when Sirius glanced over and tossed him a note. 

But Remus was not there. 

The first two lessons passed by without any sight of the boy. Sirius could have dismissed it as a sulking fit at work. But when the full moon rose above and the bed beside his was still untouched, the dark haired boy was frantic. 

"Where could he go?" Sirius paced about. 

Walk. Walk. Turn. Walk. 

Walk. Walk. Turn. Walk.

Walk. Walk…

Sirius threw his hands up in defeat and groaned. What was Remus' problem anyway? Even if he had been the one who had nominated him for the tryouts, he should know that it would have been useless. First Years could not play for the house team. 

And it was not like Sirius to not know what Remus feel about flying. 

He remembered their first lesson with Madam Hooch well enough. The brunette was quivering as he mounted the broom, afraid to kick off. Even when he was in the air, he was clutching onto his broom so hard that Sirius was afraid of the handle snapping. 

Remus was afraid of heights. What sort of friend Sirius was if he had sabotaged the boy in such a despicable way?

"That's it." Sirius glanced at his wristwatch and hurried out of the common room. 

***

The night air was extremely cold. Or perhaps it was just his imagination. A summer night could never be that cold, could it?

Sirius pulled his robe closer to himself and made his way closer to the Forbidden Forest. That was the only place in the school grounds that he had not searched. It was also the perfect place for somebody to hide if he did not want to be found. 

A wolf howled into the night.

Sirius shivered and quickened his steps, which proved to be a big mistake as he tripped over something and landed flat on his face. The wolf's howl grew louder.

Suddenly, a tree branch came swooping down at him, sweeping young Sirius Black out of its way. The tree was alive! It was livid, more like it, as Sirius watched the branches waved menacingly at him, looking more dangerous against the shadows of the night. 

Another branch came for him. Sirius would have screamed, if he had not had the breath knocked out of him. Before he lost consciousness, the boy swore he had seen something behind and between those branches. 

It was a pair of animalistic golden eyes. 

+++

End of Chapter 3

Continue to Chapter 4


	5. Chapter 4: Snape's Howler

**Cage | Chapter 4**

**A Harry Potter Fanfiction By Majokai Yukiko**

**Pairing: Remus + Sirius**

**Warning: Pre-slash. **

**This is an amateur effort and does not intend to infringe on the rights of J K Rowling, Scholastic Books and their associates. **

A/N: Have Rowling ever described Narcissca in any of her books? If she had, then I must have missed it. Just ignore it and accept my description of her the way it is, at least for this story, all right? 

+++

Chapter 4: Snape's Howler 

Sirius never wanted to wake up from that wonderful dream. He had the perfect memory of it: the soothing musk of pinewood and gentle fingers stroking his cheeks lovingly. It was a comfortable sanctuary to stay in. Until a hand replaced those fingers and began to slap at his face, softly but very insistently. The rest of his sleep melted away, and the voice above his head began to grow louder. 

"Wake up…Sirius, wake up…" The dark haired boy swept the hand away out of irritation and turned to lie on his side, burying his face into the crisp fresh sheets. 

An exasperated sigh. Sirius could almost imagine the boy above him shaking his head slightly, a slight smile gracing his lips. 

"I think he's awake, just not up."

"It's okay. Both of you can skip your first lesson if you want to. I'll tell James Potter to explain to the teacher."

"Thank you, Headmaster."

Sirius picked up the sound of light footsteps walking away from him and the creak of the door opening and then closing. He was about to peek at the door slightly to double-check when a pillow came crashing down onto his head. 

"OUCH! You're killing me!" The young boy complained, sitting up right on his bed and fixing his friend with a half pained, half-amused expression. 

"About time you wake up, Sirius." Remus complained, replacing the pillow back onto the adjacent bed. His light brown hair was combed neatly as usual. But there was an uncharacteristic slouch to the way he stood. Fatigue was shining bright through the boy's wide expressive eyes. Sirius frowned, and then looked around to inspect his surroundings.

The Hospital Wing? What was he doing in here? He remember walking out of the common room to search for Remus last night and then…

Heck! Sirius thought, focusing his attentions back onto the boy he had been so worried for the day before. 

"Remus! About the Quidditch tryouts…"

"It's okay. James explained. I'm sorry for jumping to conclusions."

Sirius breathed a sigh of relief. Good old James. He grinned; mentally reminding himself to buy the boy some Chocolate Frogs the next time he had the chance to. But still…that had not explained how he managed to land himself in the Sick Bay. The part of his mind where that memory should be was a blank. 

As if reading his mind, Remus explained. 

"You really scared me. I found you unconscious outside the common room last night, not knowing what happened." 

I must have hit my head pretty hard then. Sirius wondered, scarcely noticing how his friend was staring at his hands with a horror-struck yet guilty expression in his amber eyes. 

***

Sirius Back had happily decided to take Dumbledore's advice and stayed in the hospital wing not only for the first period but also for the entire day. Remus, on the other hand, felt rather adamant about missing lessons. The boy went back to class after the first hour, but he would always return after every lesson with various foods James had helped him nick from the house elves in the kitchen. 

But at the end of the last period, there was someone else in the Wing with Sirius. 

It was an exotically pretty girl with ebony hair and big brown eyes. Remus recognized her as Narcissca Black, a cousin of Sirius who had been sorted into Slytherin together with Snape and Malfoy. 

She was smiling shyly at the boy, gesturing wildly at the large pile of presents beside the bed, a pile that Remus had not seen before. Narcissca was speaking softly, but Remus, with his heightened senses, could head her as well as Sirius could. 

"Boy, that's a lot of get-well gifts." Sirius exclaimed, sifting through the various beautifully wrapped boxes with as much excitement as a child on Christmas. "The Malfoys, the Crabbes, the Goyles, the Parkinsons and God forbid, the Snapes!" Sirius wrinkled up his nose in disgust. 

"Don't forget Aunt Portia's." Narcissca chided lightly, handing over the biggest parcel in the pile. "But really, Sirius, you should take better care of yourself. You are the Heir after all."

Remus was startled. He always knew Sirius was the heir to the Black family fortune, but never had he realized just how important his friend was. Just a random visit to the Sick Bay demanded for the concern of almost all the high society pureblood wizarding families… 

What, exactly, did being the Heir means?

The brunette took another quick glance as Narcissca and Sirius who were enthusiastically tearing the wrapping paper off each box. He smiled and silently slipped away. 

Sirius poked at the last parcel on his bed suspiciously; as if afraid it was going to explode in his face any moment. 

"You open it." He told his cousin. Narcissca sighed and unwrapped the box. It was a pair of cufflinks, made of silver and plainly designed except for the ocean opal stone set into each link. It was beautiful. 

The dark haired girl picked up the letter that came with the present and read it, soft lush lips curving into a sinister smile. She handed the parchment over to Sirius who only grinned in reply. 

"Bring the popcorns," he said simply. 

***

The next morning, Sirius Black walked into the Great Hall looking like a million dollars. His brand new silver cufflinks caught the light and glinted, there was a ring now hanging from the chain around his neck. That too was made out of silver with an obsidian stone bearing the Black family crest encrusted in it. 

Even his boots were brand new, made out of the highest quality dragon hide. Sirius had wanted to slip on his more comfortable sneakers that morning, only to find it mysteriously dirtied with wet mud. It was strange. Remus said he was found outside the common room. He could not possibly be anywhere outdoors…

Sirius frowned and then shrugged casually while walking towards the Gryffindor table. He pulled out the empty chair beside James and grinned.  

"Watch out for the owls." Sirius whispered cryptically. Remus and Peter raised an eyebrow. 

Breakfast went without much of a hassle. The house elves, as per usual, had prepared an excellent meal. The students were all engrossed in their private conversations until the soft rustling of wings threw them into an awkward silence. 

They were almost into the third week of school at Hogwarts. Worried parents no longer sent owls after owls of letters. The most curious thing of it all was that this particular owl was carrying a bright crimson letter. 

The owl that had just flown into the Hall made a beeline straight for the Slytherin table and dropped its package in front of the greasy haired First Year. 

Severus Snape tightened his brow. A Howler? What had he done this time? He had not lost any points for his house nor had he gotten into any trouble with the teachers! 

Lucius Malfoy elbowed him and fixed the boy with a pointed glare. 

"Open it, Severus." Lucius whispered, staring fearfully across the Hall at the unreadable look on Black's face. 

The sallow-faced boy nodded and then chokingly broke wax seal. For a while, nothing happened. Until—

"SNIVELLUS SNAPE!!" The Howler howled in a sharp shrill voice that Severus recognized as his grandmother's, who unfortunately had quite some problems pronouncing his name. "YOU OUGHT TO BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELF! WHAT HAVE I HEARD FROM PORTIA? THE HEIR SICK AFTER JUST A WEEK AT SCHOOL?!!"

"What has it got to do with me…" Severus muttered under his breath. 

"WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN DOING AT HOGWARTS? SLEEPING?! IT IS OUR DUTY AS A PUREBLOOD TO LOOK OUT FOR THE TWO HEIRS…AND I MEAN BOTH OF THEM! IF I HEAR ANYMORE ABOUT YOUR IRRESPONSIBLE BEHAVIOR, SNIVELLUS, YOU ARE GOING TO GET IT FROM ME!"

The red envelope flew over to the Gryffindor table, stopped in front of Sirius and continued in a much gentler tone. 

"Oh, dear boy, do take care of yourself, okay? You can always get Snivellus to help if you need to. The boy is promised a spanking from me if he refused." And it burst into flames. 

"Thank you, Aunty Snape." Sirius replied charmingly at the burning Howler. 

There was silence once again. Everybody looked from Severus' beetroot face to Sirius' self-satisfied smirk, before breaking into laughter. 

"Way to go, Snivellus!" Somebody yelled. 

End of Chapter 4

Continue to Chapter 5


	6. Chapter 5: The Noble And Most Ancient Ho...

**Cage | Chapter 5**

**A Harry Potter Fanfiction By Majokai Yukiko**

**Pairing: Remus + Sirius**

**Warning: Pre-slash**

**This is an amateur effort and does not intend to infringe on the rights of J K Rowling, Scholastic Books and their associates. **

A/N: Nope, I'm not a Star Trek fan. I'm just from Singapore. Singapore schools actually do call their Hospital Wing the Sick Bay…^^ I never realized the term is usually used on ships. 

---

Chapter 5: The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black 

Autumn came and went, soon followed by winter. In this short time, Remus' mother had fallen ill for five times, with an interval of twenty-eight days between each. He was running out of excuses as to why he had to disappear from school every month. Remus was also tired of fabricating lies, explaining why he always looked a little worse for wear after each visit. 

Understanding his limitations, Remus made it a point to distance himself from his friends, especially Sirius, who had been hounding him with unasked-for concern after every full moon. Except for lessons and mealtimes, Remus would exclude himself from his friends' midnight escapades around the castle.He preferred to remain in the dorms and read the books he had loaned out from the library. 

Ever since that incident that had landed Sirius in the Hospital Wing followed by Severus Snape's ill received Howler, all the books Remus had borrowed had been of similar nature. He wanted to know: what made the Black Heir so important to the community? ****

_All these times I had deluded myself into thinking that staying away from them would make it hurt less when they know what I am. Look at what I have been doing during those staying-away time._ Remus thought sardonically to himself, looking around the dormitory at his friends make plans for the kitchen raid that night. 

Or the Marauders, as they prefer to call themselves. 

"All right! Let's put it up: who's going?" James called out, retrieving his Invisibility Cloak from his trunk. The boy said that it was a gift from his father. For his 'supper-hunt', as he so aptly put it. 

"Not me." Remus replied, already crawling into bed with a book in his hand. 

James nodded. "So it will be the usual: Peter, Sirius and…'

"Count me out this time, James."

Everybody else looked up with a shocked expression on their faces, especially Peter, who was having some problems scraping his jaws from off the floor. 

"But…why? You…you never missed out on our trips, Sirius." Peter sputtered, glancing nervously over at Remus and James for support. 

Sirius Black lounged comfortably into the couch, looking unbelievably at ease in his muggle clothing and munching on a Cadbury. The Marauders often used to wonder how Sirius, being the Heir to one of the most high-nosed wizarding family around, had access to an almost unhealthy amount of muggle items. Sirius had only shrugged and explained that his family lived close to muggle London when they asked. 

"Just tired," the black haired waved dismissively with one hand, the other playing casually with the ends of his hair, which the boy was trying to grow out. 

"You sure? We can always get Snivellus here to nurse you back to health,_"_ James snickered. "That would be good entertainment too."

"HELL NO!" Sirius almost jumped out of his chair at the audacity of James' suggestion. "He may shock me straight in cardiac arrest with his ugly face."

James laughed louder, grabbed Peter and urged the smaller boy towards the portrait hole. "We'll have fun without you then. Don't expect takeouts!"

The dormitory was silent. At least it was for a moment until Sirius got up from the couch to plop himself unceremoniously on Remus' bed. 

"Why don't you just ask me?" Sirius asked suddenly. 

"Ask you about?" 

Sirius pointed to the book in Remus' hands and sighed. "You have been trying to find out about the Blacks, haven't you?" 

Remus, for a while, considered burying his face so deep into the book that he might disappear in it forever, wanting to hide from Sirius' scrutinizing glance. After some valiant attempts, Remus finally lowered his book and blushed. 

"So I've been found out." He answered guiltily. "How?"

"Not difficult, Remus." Sirius gestured towards the bookshelves. " 'History of Magic', 'Rise and Fall of Pureblood Families', 'Wizards' Customs and Traditions'…really, Remus, who could stand such dry reading for five whole months?"

Remus blushed even brighter. 

Sirius grabbed a pillow from his bed and sat down cross-legged, his arms wrung tight around the soft cushion. He propped his head up with the pillow and stared straight into Remus' eyes. 

"You could have ask anyone about this Heir business. James, Peter, hell…even Arthur will know something about it."

"You know what makes the Blacks and the Malfoys rich as they are?" Remus shook his head and frowned at the sudden look of cynicism on Sirius' face. 

"Dark arts,_"_ Sirius snorted. "Such wealth can never be brought about with _nouveau riche_. It is gotten from generations after generations of sinful dabbling with the Dark Arts. But why do we still continue even though we now have enough money to live out a few centuries in luxury?"

"Greed." Remus guessed, only managing to incite the dark haired boy into maniacal laughter. 

"If only it was that simple." Sirius clasped his hand around the ring hanging from his neck, feeling the weight of its significance on his shoulders. "They are waiting," he continued, using 'they' as if he had no wish to be part of the camp. "For a messiah that will cleanse out what they considered to be the filth of the community: mudbloods, squibs, half-breeds…" and he trailed off, lost in his own thoughts. 

Finally, Sirius broke out of his reverie and reached out a hand at Remus with a strange but helpless expression on his face. Amber eyes blinked. Remus felt the impulse like no other to hold Sirius hand and rescue the boy out of the darkness that was his name.

Light caught onto the cufflinks on Sirius' sleeves and glinted. Remus flinched, instinctively moving away from the other boy. 

Silver…the wolf in him hissed dangerously.****

"Never mind…" Sirius murmured and went to sleep. 

On his own bed. 

Remus waited for his friend's breathing to even out before he dared risk a glance. 

"Sorry," he whispered with genuine regret in his voice. He put his book down on the bedside table and turned out the lights. 

***

Christmas came and Christmas went. It was back in school for the Marauders after more than a week of season's break. 

Remus knocked into James and Peter at the castle gate. There was a look of anxiety on their faces. 

"Where's Sirius?" Remus asked immediately, noticing the significant absence of the boy. James bit on his lower lip and grabbed Remus' arm urgently. 

"Come with me," James ordered. 

***

End of Chapter 5

Continue to Chapter 6  ****


	7. Chapter 6: Toujours Pur

**Cage | Chapter 6**

**A Harry Potter Fanfiction By Majokai Yukiko**

**Pairing: Remus + Sirius**

**Warning: Pre-slash**

**This is an amateur effort and does not intend to infringe on the rights of J K Rowling, Scholastic Books and its associates. **

**A/N: Dedicated to Ally for her wonderful ideas and efforts at beta-reading this piece of junk. **

luvthemarauders: I admit that denying all that they had been taught since young is something that kids will not do. Kids will usually listen to whatever their parents say until 13 or 14 when they realize there's something really wrong about that. That was something I had been debating with since I started writing this and what I have came up with is that: Sirius wanted to fit in. He wanted to be like the rest of the family more than anything else in the world. That's why he still keeps the Black Heir persona. But still, no matter how hard he try, he just could not see things the way his family did. Can you imagine the pain of being outed for a child of eleven? Read on, and you see what Sirius had done to keep those demons at bay. 

Orion-San: On the other hand, I like cliffhangers. I understand a reader's frustration. But I do update often, don't I? Around a week a chapter or so. *smirks*

--

Chapter 6: Toujours Pur 

James knocked on the door and waited. Some footsteps later, the door opened with Madam Pomfrey shucking her head out from the small gap. 

"Can we see him?" James asked politely, his voice tight with barely restrained emotions. But whether it was anger or sorrow, Remus could not tell. 

It seemed like forever as the medi-witch watched them carefully and finally gave a nod, opening the door wider for the Marauders to enter. 

James pulled Remus towards the end of the Hospital Wing where the shadows were, with Peter trudging close behind them. The castle was silent. At such a late hour of the night, most students were already asleep. But the castle was not at peace. Remus could feel James' hand shaking with fear and a slight tinge of saltiness in the air that seemed to be ominously familiar…

Blood?

So deep he was in his reverie that he nearly knocked into James who suddenly stopped. The metallic scent of blood was the strongest there. Remus turned to his side. 

The moon was waxing. Even though there was still a few days to the next full moon, there was enough light from outside for one to see. 

Remus gasped. Behind him, Peter stifled a sob. 

There on the bed lay Sirius Black. His usually tanned face was ashen with the color of death and his hands were laid one on top of the other as if readied for the funeral parlor. For a moment, Remus thought he was dead, until he noticed the hypnotic rising and falling of his chest. 

Up. Down. 

Breathe in. Breathe out. 

The silver moonlight shining into the room made the young boy appear much more cankerous than he already was. Dark purple bruises were all over his pale face, his left eye red and swollen to the size of a plum, a thin red marking was lined around his neck in place of the silver chain that was no longer there. 

"Here," James whispered, as if afraid to wake his friend. He picked up Sirius' left arm and pushed back the cuff, revealing the limp white wrist concealed by the muggle wrist bands that Sirius always seemed to fancy. 

Sirius never removed those wristbands, Remus suddenly realized as James gently tugged at the elastic bands, trying to get them off. Not even during Potions when there was always a high chance of having them soak in strange liquids. Not even in sleep. 

Bit by bit the flesh was revealed. Remus almost cried. The once perfect flesh was marred by ugly knife slashes. Some were old silver scars but most were fresh, still slightly red with a crust of newly formed scab over them. 

"He didn't want to die," Remus murmured, reaching out a hand to brush his fingers lightly across the wounds. Sirius had slashed across his wrists multiple times, but he never slashed along the veins. 

"He was asking for help."

There was a moment of silence. Nobody knew what to say about this newfound revelation. James slipped the wristbands back on and replaced the hand where it was, placing his own over it. Remus did the same, followed by Peter. 

"We won't say a thing." 

***

It took Sirius one full week to regain consciousness. Even so, it was almost as if the Dementors had sucked the soul right out of him. He roamed the school like a wraith, no longer responding to James' many efforts to cheer him up. 

Meanwhile, news of the Black heir being discredited spread across the student population like wild fire, no thanks to Lucius Malfoy and his adoring fan club. The Slytherins no longer held Sirius in high regard. But the boy simply could not care less. 

Was it possible for anyone to sleep with his eyes wide open? Remus wondered. For that one week, whenever Remus looked over to the bed beside his, he would see Sirius' dark blue eyes wide open, void of emotion or thought as the boy simply stare at the ceiling. Once in a while, tears would fill up those sapphire wells and overflow, and like how he had taken to handling things since the Christmas holidays; he would just let the tears flow. Not even bothering to wipe them off his cheeks, simply allowing them to soak his pillows. 

The Marauders, true to their promise, had not spoken about Sirius' suicidal tendencies to anyone. Not even the boy himself. Sirius should definitely be spared the shame of his friends knowing. Nonetheless, James and Peter had been vigilant enough to discreetly keep any sharp objects from the boy. 

Remus took another bite on his sandwich and looked over to the boy sitting diagonally opposite him. Sirius was as usual, staring blankly at his food, stabbing at the sausages with his fork mindlessly. 

It was worrying and at the same time, frustrating to see how Sirius was determined to waste himself away. Nothing, absolutely nothing could get a rise out of him. For all that he was concerned, Gryffindor could lose a thousand points right then and there, and he would not have even raise his head to look. 

It had been like this for days. Remus remembered what had happened just yesterday at this very Hall. 

/flashback/

_"Why, why, is this the Black heir I see over here?" Malfoy smirked, swaggering over to the Marauders with his lackeys following close behind him. Snape's thin lips were pursed together tightly to form a satisfied grin, enjoying the view of Sirius' slumped shoulders and desolate expression. _

_"Sod off, Malfoy." James hissed, getting up from his chair to face the Slytherins. Somewhere beside him, Peter squeaked nervously, looking from one friend to another. _

_"I am not talking to you, Potter." Malfoy drawled. "Then again, I was not talking to you either," he continued, keeping his eyes on the seated figure of Sirius Black. "I should call you the **ex-heir** now, shouldn't I?"_

_With that, Sirius looked up. He pulled his chair back calmly. For a moment, Remus' heart skipped a beat. There was a spark of that old fire in Sirius' eyes. But almost as quickly as it came, the spark was extinguished again. _

_"I'll go right now if I were you, Malfoy." Sirius replied quietly. _

_"And what if I don't? You know what the rest of our kind will do to you if you even dare harm the Heir."_

_Sirius took a deep breath, almost trying to calm himself and stooped to grab his books, ready to leave the Hall in peace. The boy turned to go, and then stopped suddenly. He bent down slightly, reaching for a bowl of untouched corn soup on the table. _

_"Anybody still want this?" He asked. The Gryffindors shook their heads. The dark haired boy gave a slight smile, grabbed the bowl and tossed its contents towards Malfoy and his posse with frightening accuracy. _

_The entire hall fell silent. Sirius cocked his head to one side and examined the damage he had done, lingering his gaze on Malfoy's appalled expression. He thought about something for a while, and then bowed courteously._

_"I'm sorry," he apologized, sounding truly regretful, and left the hall with his long black robes flapping behind him._

/end flashback/

The bell rang. Students gathered their book and quickly hurried out of the hall to their next class. Remus picked up his bag, was about to say something to Sirius when he realized the boy was already out of the Great Hall. He looked worriedly at James and dropped his gaze to the plate of barely touched food on the table. 

When the Marauders reached the corridors, they found Sirius talking to a Slytherin girl with long black hair and dark blue eyes. No, it was the girl trying to get Sirius to talk to her. She seemed to be gesturing frantically at the boy, while Sirius only regarded her blankly, not paying her much attention. 

James thought briefly about going forward to rescue his best friend, when a loud slap pulled every activity around to a halt. 

The girl was glaring at Sirius with barely disguised wrath in her eyes, the boy himself was on the floor, holding a hand to his cheek and staring back with a look of disbelief. 

"I am disappointed in you, Sirius Black!" The girl yelled, lithe shoulders still shaking with rage. 

Remus waited with abated breath. The old Sirius would never allow himself to be slapped by a girl. But this was not the old Sirius. What would the boy do now?

He laughed. 

Every student in the corridors turned to look at Sirius Black with an appalled look on their face, while the boy only stood up calmly while he laughed, brushing the dust off his expensive robes. 

Remus looked over to his side at James and Peter, who only smiled. Everyone else might be looking at Sirius with a curious look, but the Marauders knew better. This was the Sirius Black they knew and loved. 

Sirius continued to laugh uncontrollably, picking up his books from the floor and tucking them under his arm. 

"Have you gone mental?" Somebody shouted. Sirius stopped and watched with a bemused expression as a certain blonde boy pushed through the crowd and stood in front of him. It was Lucius Malfoy. 

"Hey, Malfoy." Sirius greeted cheerfully. James, Peter and Remus quickly ran forward to stand supportively behind their friend, just in case the confrontation gets physical. With the pathetically little amount of food Sirius had been taking in these days, Remus suspect he would not even beat Snape in a one-on-one, not to mention Malfoy's two burly bodyguards that could make even a troll look good. 

"What's going on, Bellatrix?" Lucius asked the girl who slapped Sirius earlier. She only smirked, looking from one heir to another. 

"Sirius Black, if you think you are better than the rest of us, then prove it." Bellatrix sneered. Peter half wished she would not do that. It only made her pretty face contort into an ugly shape. 

"How?" Midnight eyes twinkled in delight and curiosity. 

"I challenge both you and Malfoy over here to touch the trunk of the Whomping Willow. No magic." 

Lucius positively turned green at the idea. But Sirius only glowed. 

"Challenge accepted."

+End of Chapter 6+

+Continue to Chapter 7+


	8. Chapter 7: Attempting The Willow

**Cage | Chapter 7**

**A Harry Potter Fanfiction By Majokai Yukiko **

**Pairing: Sirius + Remus**

Warning: Pre-slash 

**This is an amateur effort and does not intend to infringe the rights of J K Rowling, Scholastic Books and its associates.  **

**A/N: Took me long enough. Sorry, guys, I was a little preoccupied with my other SBRL fics. But here it is anyway…^^ hope you enjoy it.  **

--- 

Chapter 7: Attempting The Willow 

It was a fine day with enough clouds and plenty of sunshine. But it was a day already shot straight to hell.  

Lucius Malfoy stood quivering, trying to put up a brave façade for those rooting for him. His supporters were all standing behind him, silently providing him with their moral support, although a champion was what the blonde boy really needed at the moment.  

Facing him was the dark haired boy he had grown up with. Sirius Black leaned most of his weight on one leg casually, whispering to James beside him, all the while keeping a mocking eye on his opponent. The rest of the Marauders cast a worried glance from their friends to the willow tree a few meters away from them.  

"All right, guys, ready?" Bellatrix shuffled her feet impatiently at her cousin and her childhood friend. The fifth year swept her long hair away from her neck and held out her hands. Sirius and Lucius handed her their wands.  

Sirius smirked and was about to step forward to attempt the willow when somebody grabbed him by the arm. It was Remus.  

"Sirius, are you sure you want to do this?" Amber eyes met sapphire ones. The latter spoke of determination and strength. It was the determination to prove his worth and the strength to see it through. Reluctantly, Remus released his grip. "If you say so…" 

The boy flexed his fingers and blew his long fringe out of his face. The insane tree waved its branches threateningly at the crowd who had gathered there, promising a very painful death to whoever that stepped too close to it.  

"My father said the willow was only planted on the compound this year. Both my parents think Dumbledore had gone mad, leaving something so dangerous in the school." James whispered to his friends as they watched with abated breath at Sirius, who was shrugging out of his long and restricting robes. Below it, the boy was wearing a pair of black muggle jeans and plain white T-shirt.  

"What if Sirius dies?" Peter whispered back timidly.  

"He will not." Remus replied. 

Everybody, including Sirius himself, turned to look at Remus. The dark haired boy offered a smile and then concentrated his attention back onto the tree.  

There was a moment of silence. The tree did not move, neither did Sirius. The boy was simply staring at the tree, as if thinking that by will along he could stop the tree from attacking him.  

Bellatrix rolled her eyes.  

"If you are still going to do it, Sirius, I suggest you hurry."  

Sirius held out a hand for silence and slowly lowered it. The tree moved hesitantly at the boy's sudden action, trying to determine if he was a threat. Then, before anyone could blink, Sirius leapt into action.  

Remus had never seen anybody move so fast without magic. Judging by the looks of the spectators, who had gathered round, neither had they. Sirius dashed haphazardly between the branches, avoiding the attacks the willow was dishing out, sometimes by a good distance, sometimes so close that the girls nearly screamed in fear. In good time, Sirius had already crossed his arms across his chest and smirked at Lucius Malfoy, while leaning back against the trunk of the huge tree. He had positioned himself right at where the branches could not reached. He was safe.  

The Gryffindors yelped in delight and cheered. The Slytherins turned green in anger and envy. Lucius only swallowed the lump in his throat nervously. It was his turn.  

Bellatrix stared daggers at her cousin and marched over to where Lucius was. 

"Your turn," she nudged. Lucius shook his head, refusing to move. His legs were threatening to give in any moment. He could not surrender. The Malfoy pride would never allow it.  

Trembling in fear, he took a couple of steps closer to the willow.  

Wrong move.  

The Whomping Willow, after being repeatedly teased by Sirius earlier, was more violent than usual, attacking Lucius with enough force to knock out three grown men. The Slytherin's mouth fell open, as if he was about to scream, and then drew in a sharp gasp when a pair of hands shoved him away onto the grass.  

Sirius cried out loud in pain when the Willow struck him across the face. The rest of the Slytherins shrieked in fear and ran away in the direction of the school, leaving behind only the Marauders, frozen on the spot to see their friend lying on the ground, unconscious.  

Lucius staggered onto his feet, and ran off with the rest without as much as a backward glance at the person who saved his life.  

The tree seemed to know that it had done remarkable damage to the black-haired boy. It stopped, swaying slightly, as if contemplating whether or not to forgive the boy for his earlier trespassing and disrespect. Remus frowned, and took a step forward, mentally calculating his ability to cross the short distance and pull Sirius out of danger's way in time.  

The Gryffindor chose that moment to regain consciousness, rubbing the back of his head lightly, and winced. The Willow struck again.  

Dark blue eyes widened in fear, feeling the pain of the tree's attack before it even came. It never came.  

Out of instinct, Remus threw himself onto Sirius, pulling both of them out of harm's way. The branch that came swiftly down whipped the brunette across the back instead, tearing the crisp white shirt into tatters.  

A dull thud was heard as Peter fainted, collapsing onto the ground in fear. James stared from one friend to another, wondering whom he should help first.  

"Remus!" He heard Sirius exclaim, as the dark haired boy shook the limp body frantically, frightened by Remus' blood, by the red liquid seeping through his own shirt, and by the mark he saw on Remus' bare back.  

*** 

Sirius did not want to visit Remus in the Hospital Wing that evening. But since he could not come up with a reasonable excuse for not doing so, he had no choice but to allow his best friend James to drag him off.  

For obvious reasons, he was disturbed by the prospect of seeing Remus. That scar he had seen on Remus' shoulder blade…he knew what it was. Being born in a family that dabbled frequently with the Dark Arts could do that to you. Sirius had no idea what scares him more: finding out that one of his closest friend was not exactly what the rest of the wizarding community would call human, or not knowing why he had kept this knowledge away from the rest of the Marauders.  

Remus was a werewolf…common sense told him that he should say the truth out loud to Peter and James right now, instead of being led towards the Wing. He should be warning his friends about the potential danger lurking around them. This wolf shared the same dormitories as they did. Damn! Sometimes the four of them had even shared the same bed!  

An instinctive shudder went through Sirius when he thought about that, recalling all the chances when Remus could have attacked them, whether they were awake or asleep. It was terrifying, that thought, though fascinating nonetheless. From what the books always said about werewolves, Sirius would have thought he would have been bitten or eaten by Remus long ago. What was holding the brunette back then? 

As they neared the end of the corridor leading towards the Hospital Wing, James suddenly stopped in his steps with a loud groan.  

"Now I know what I'd forgotten!"  

Sirius stopped too, irritated to have his chain of thought broken. "What?" 

"Food! You can't visit someone who's sick empty-handed!" Before Sirius could comment again, James hurried off in the opposite direction, muttering something about kind house elves that work in the kitchen and Invisibility Cloaks.  

Sirius sighed, tapping his feet, wanting to wait till James was back before entering the room. There was no way he was speaking to Remus Lupin alone. Not after he found out who, or more accurately, what he was.  

"Why are you standing out here?" The boy jumped, spinning around to meet the stern face of Madam Pomfrey, the school's nurse. Sirius looked down, and shuffled his feet.  

"Er…I was waiting for James…we're here to see Remus, you see."  

"Ah…" her face softened slightly. "He's awake now. I supposed you could go in." She opened the door even wider, stepping to one side to allow Sirius to enter. He shuffled his feet even more violently, took a deep breath as if bracing himself for something, and then smiled.  

"Okay," he muttered and walked into the Hospital Wing.  

"He's at the last bed, next to the window." Sirius nodded.  

The setting sun painted the Hospital Wing with its radiant colors. The white sheets were tinted orange, while the walls were stained dark red. Deep into the other end of the huge room, right next to the window, was where Remus was. The boy had his back towards Sirius, his attentions drawn to something outside of the window. He tucked his legs close to himself as he sat on the bed, his chin resting against the top of his knees and looking out of the window. Sirius was taken aback.  

With his keen sense of observation, Sirius noticed that Remus' shoulders were hunched, his head bowed slightly. Though he was easily distracted, once or twice, by the way the light from the sunset seemed to play against the golden tint in Remus' hair. Sirius wondered why he had not noticed the symptoms before.  

Monthly disappearances, returning back from each absence looking as if he had been through hell, the lightening streaks in his hair, and slightly sharp nails that had raked across his own skin once or twice by accident over dinner…all of these pointed to Remus' identity. Sirius was puzzled over something else too. Surely Dumbledore would have known that Remus was a werewolf, so why had he allowed for such a potentially dangerous dark creature to study under the same roof as the other children? 

But what had really confused Sirius was neither of that. Looking at his friend as he did now, Sirius suddenly realized he had not really cared if Remus was a werewolf or not. Remus was Remus, who cares about anything else? 

Remus stiffened and then sat down straighter, as if noticing another's presence in the room. When he turned around to smile slightly in recognition as Sirius, the other boy had to suck in his breath in shock.  

The glint of the unshed tears in Remus' eyes had undid him. He now knew why Remus, despite all the chances he had, had not harmed any of them.  

He supposed the lion that lied down with the lambs could not be considered a lion anymore.  

Right? 

*** 

End of Chapter 7

Continue to Chapter 8 


	9. Chapter 8: The Valentine's Day Feast

**Cage | Chapter 8**

**A Harry Potter Fanfiction by Majokai Yukiko**

**Pairing: Remus + Sirius**

**Warning: Pre-slash**

**This is an amateur effort and does not intend to infringe on the rights of J K Rowling, Scholastic Books and its associates. **

**A/N: Dedicated to Ally for her wonderful ideas and efforts at beta-reading this piece of junk.**

_Son of twilight: I can't possibly let you die, can I?  *smiles sweetly*  Here it is!  I can't update as frequently as I'd like to, thanks to this disgusting thing known as school.  But I'll try._

_Esaure: Thank you for that lovely compliment.  I've never been given 'godhood' so to speak for my writing.  Thank you!_

_Reddiej: This story is split into different arcs.  We are still currently on the first arc, and I have 4 arcs planned, all the way up to James' and Lily's wedding. So yup, you are right.  It's going to be a terribly LONG story.  But I'm having fun writing it. Are you having fun reading it yet? ^0^_

---

**Chapter 8: Valentine's Day Feast**

"Remus, are you there?"  Peter stood nervously beside his roommate's bed, shut out by the thick curtains that split the rest of the room into a different world.  He shifted his weight from one leg to another, his eyes darting towards the closed door every moment or so. 

A low groan that came from behind the curtains. Peter frowned, wondering whether if he should take a peek to check if his friend was fine. Remus definitely did not sound alright to him, but if he was too ill he would ask for help, right? 

The short boy took another glance at the door, silently willing James and Sirius to return as soon as possible. 

"Remus?" He asked again quietly, reaching out slowly towards the lapels of the curtain. 

"Er…NO!" 

Peter drew back his hand quickly, shocked by Remus's sudden outburst. 

"It's alright," the voice behind the curtains hurried to say.  "I'll be fine after a good night's sleep.  Just go and enjoy yourself at the feast." 

"But…it's the Valentine's Day feast!"  The boy exclaimed.  It was his favorite time of the year.  The whole series of tests and examinations had yet to begin, but the various feasts had already started.  Ever since the Christmas feast, they had the New Year's feast, the V-day feast, and Easter to look forward to.  It was a heavenly time for any connoisseur of food.  Especially a Hogwarts student who claimed to be one, for the house elves at the school were known throughout England to be the best and most willing to serve of all.  Even the Malfoys and the Blacks could not claim better. 

"Exactly!"  Peter could almost 'hear' Remus smile, hidden though it was.  "You'd better rush down to the Great Hall before James finishes your share too!" 

Peter let out a yelp and turned around, nearly tripping over a small fold in the carpet in his hurry to get out of the room. 

Behind the curtains, Remus grinned weakly and tugged his blankets closer around himself, shielding from view the growing hair on his arms. 

***

The Great Hall was filled with pink and red streamers all around, no doubt being the handiwork of the great Professor Albus Dumbledore and his obsession with party decorations that went with the occasion, regardless of how distasteful they may be. 

The long tables were all cleared away except for one, leaving a huge floor space for couples to dance.  Sirius led the redhead in his arms off for another slow dance on the floor with a smile, catching a glimpse of his best friend pigging himself out over at the punch table. 

_What was her name again?_ Sirius wondered, his feet moving in step to the beat of the waltz.  The good thing about being brought up in a pure blood family, they never spare any cost trying to educate him into being the "right" person for the heir.  He had spent long afternoons learning how to walk into a room and command the right presence, or how to pick the proper robe for a certain occasion, and of course also how to dance at social functions.  He had to learn all of that when all he had wanted to do was go outside with his broomstick and enjoy the feel of wind on his face without wondering whether or not he was doing it correctly.

The waltz ended shortly enough.  Thank Merlin for that.  Sirius could never understand why the crux of wooing a girl lies on the dance floor.  Did it really matter if your date was a good dancer or not?  He kept all these questions to himself.  Outwardly, he gave a rakish grin and asked if she wanted to take a walk outside in the moonlight. 

A little fresh air would do him good. 

The moon was out, almost full.  The garden was bathed beautiful in the silver moonlight, almost surreal in its appearance.  Even the willow that nearly claimed his best friend's life some time ago stood still and silent in the shadows, ever watching. 

Sirius frowned.  Speaking of Remus, where was he?  The dark haired boy looked around anxiously.  The brunet, though soft-spoken, would seldom miss out the chance to be with the rest of the gang. 

Letting go of the arm of the girl he was holding, he turned back towards the direction of the school. 

And then stopped. 

The full moon would be in a day's time.  Who knew what the beast inside Remus could do at this time?  Would a bite from a werewolf before a full moon be infectious?  He wondered as a shiver ran involuntarily down his spine.  How many nights had he slept with his bed next to a werewolf when the moon was almost full, when the beast was most likely to free itself from the boy's mental cage?

Perhaps he would have to reconsider the mental control of a ten-year-old boy. 

"Sirius, what's wrong?"  He looked down at the shorter girl next to her and gave her a charming smile worthy of a member of the Black family.  He remembered her name now.  It started with an 'E'.

"No…nothing's wrong." 

Evans…  Lily Evans.  Yes, that was her name.  Lily Evans.

***

"Where were you last night, Sirius?"  The dark haired boy looked up from his toast, at his best friend's worried face from across the table. 

James folded his arms and waited patiently for Sirius to reply.  It was unlike Sirius to sneak off on any late night escapades without the rest of the Marauders, much less not informing them about it.  Not telling Peter, James could excuse.  The timid boy might not necessarily be the best person to pull pranks with.  Not telling Remus, who had spent all of last night and the morning sick and huddling under his blankets was justifiable too.  But they were like brothers! How could Sirius not tell _him_?

Whatever it was, James was definitely upset over Sirius Black keeping _anything away from him. _

Sirius grinned sheepishly and opened his mouth, about to reply when he found himself suddenly attacked by a glass of water. 

Held by a hand attached to the body of a beautiful girl. 

"Sirius Black!"  Lily Evans cried angrily, slamming the glass onto an empty space on the table.  "You stood me up!"

"Isn't that the girl Sirius was –"

"Shh!"

Sirius reached into his pocket for a handkerchief, wiping at his face calmly.  It was refreshing, to see such a fiery tempered girl around.  Most of the other girls he had stood up before would have picked a less crowded place to confront him.  Not even his cousin Bellatrix had the nerve to raise such a racket in the Great Hall.  It was simply unheard of. 

Mudblood, the snob in him snorted. 

"So?  Do I even need to hand in an excuse letter for standing you up?" 

"Sirius!"  James shot his friend a look.  Shrew or not, this was not the way to treat a girl. 

Lily's face turned white with barely controlled fury.  She grabbed for her wand, ready to throat a hex or two or nine straight into Sirius Black's unrepentant face when James, the boy with the messy black hair, the one who had been hanging around the bastard of a Black since day one, grabbed her wrist and stilled it. 

"You won't want to be doing that," James Potter said smoothly, but he was quickly rewarded with a resounding slap. 

Lily tugged herself free from the stunned boy, huffing in anger as she returned to her seat without a backward glance, where she was immediately flanked by her many female supporters. 

James Potter remained motionless, his dark brown eyes wide with shock and awe behind his glasses.  Slowly, he raised his hand to his face, resting his fingers against the red handprint on his cheek. 

"Wow…" he murmured under his breath, his eyes on the redheaded figure sitting at the other end of the Gryffindor table. 

***

"But Sirius…where _were_ you last night?" 

Sirius spun around sharply, irritation spread across his handsome features. 

"Peter, I swear if you ask me that just one more time, I'll wring your fat useless head off that pudgy neck!"  The small boy paled, sucking in his breath and stared at his friend with fearsome wide eyes.  Sirius smirked, pleased with the effect of his words. 

"Golden threads," he told the Fat Lady and crawled through the hole to the Gryffindor common room. 

"Sirius…"  Peter started again, moving to crawl in after the other boy.  But the portrait slammed shut before him. 

"Password please," the Fat Lady asked airily, busy admiring her reflection in a handheld mirror.  Peter stood, stumped, and then scratched at his hair nervously.  What was it again?  He remembered it had something to do about sewing…

"Golden needles?"  He tried.  The Fat Lady raised an eyebrow at him, and looked away. 

Behind the portrait hole, Sirius heaved a sigh of relief.  While it was endearing sometimes to have your own private little fan club following you around, one man strong as it was, Peter Pettigrew grated painfully on his nerves more often than not.  He could not understand why James allowed the boy to follow them around.  With Remus' dashing wit, James' guts and his unstoppable charm, they could easily get themselves in and out safety of any prank they could possibly think up of. There was no need for a tagalong. 

He threw his books casually onto the big sofa in the room and shrugged out of his robe.  It was strange that the fire was kept burning in the fireplace, bathing the room in a soft warm glow.  There should not be anyone up here since breakfast. 

"Eh?  I didn't know you were back, Sirius."  Sirius started.  _Oh damn! I've forgotten about Remus!_

Frozen in fear, Sirius turned around slowly, mentally bracing himself to meet perhaps the longhair snout of a wolf, or a pair of flashing demonic eyes.  He expected a lot of terrible, horrifying things, but he was definitely not expecting to see a tired old smile on the pale face of Remus Lupin. 

His longish light brown hair fell messily and lifelessly around his angular face.  His amber eyes were almost yellow with fatigue.  The oversized pajamas shirt he was wearing hung loosely over his slight frame, almost drowning the boy in its many folds.  It had only been a day since Sirius last saw him, yet he could barely imagine how much weight his friend had lost. 

Remus frowned, looking down uncomfortably at himself.  He ran his fingers carelessly though his hair, sighing in unconscious exasperation at the loose strands that came off, like that of a dying man. 

"Remus…your hair…"

"Oh, that."  Remus leant against the wall, his eyes half-lidded.  "I have not been feeling well since last night.  Must have eaten something that didn't agree with me."

Liar, Sirius wanted to say, while mentally kicking himself at the same time.  He never knew how the coming of the transformation would take so much out of his friend.  How could he even think Remus as dangerous?  He should more likely view Peter with mistrust than do so for Remus. 

Too little, he realized.  He knew too little about werewolves.  What he needed was not the various books in his home library or the school library about how vicious the beasts could be. 

He needed to know more about the man under the unwilling skin of the wolf. 

+++

End of Chapter 8

Continue to Chapter 9


	10. Final Author's Notes Before The End

**Final Words from the Author Before the End**

Well, since the next chapter is the last chapter for this arc and I have no idea when is the next time I'm going to write the next arc… (Alright, I'm just joking. I'm working on the next arc now as you are reading this, happy?) I've decided to write these final notes, as usual, answering some of the questions I was not able to answer earlier. 

The most common question regarding 'Cage' is the reason as to why I put in so much effort writing such a terrible long series. The plot of this story runs in the way that I cannot deviate much from it. It must tie in with J K Rowling's universe as much as possible while I'm at it. Limited space for creativity and all that…

Yup, I'm aware of the restrictions. But the real reason for me writing this is because I needed a background for all my other Sirius/Remus stories and I thought 'Cage' would do nicely. Rowling provides minimal information on the Marauders. Therefore, in order for me not to have my universe crashing all over the place, I decided to standardize it. 

Ergo, I'm simply trying to write a reference book for myself. 

As for response…I frankly wasn't expecting such a good response for Cage. Truth be told, I thought it was rather boring. Yet there are people who think I should be worshiped on an altar for this fiction. *hugs readers* I love you guys too!

Per usual, I dealt with lots of issues in this arc alone. One of which is the issue of suicide. I had my own bouts of depression, especially two years ago when I just began dating. It was my boyfriend Lionel then who pulled me out of it. Ironically, he was the one out of the two of us who committed suicide, while I'm still alive right now, happy in my new school, with my new friends. 

His death brought out something very clearly to me. Those who really want to die will never let others know of their intentions. We never hear anything about him wanting to die until we heard the news from the police. Some of us never even know about it until we saw his obituary in the papers. During my depression period, I spent a huge amount of time whining and crying and threatening suicide. I think deep down, I know I didn't want to die. That's why I made so much noise, wanting people to notice me. Deliberately making huge cuts on my wrists that are visible but not fatal, just like Sirius in this story. We were asking for help. 

It was the same for Remus. I think deep down, he wants someone to find out about his condition. Lying is tiring. Lying to your best friends is doubly so. He is in a dilemma: to keep on hiding and maintain this fragile friendship, or to admit it all out and risk losing the first and possibly only friends he will have in his lifetime. All those drama-queen crisis he had, to me is not as simple as it seems. It is a child's way of saying "look at me! And find out for yourself what's wrong with me!" 

Last but not least, portrayal of Sirius as a total spoilt brat. Well, only one thing to say about that: if you are brought up in a family where you know you are better than anybody else, richer than anybody else, will you behave like this too?

Heartfelt thanks to Jedusor, Cygna-hime, greenfairie, Enemy of The Lone One, SirenM, Fina, chimerical, Larken84, Invader Nence, thehobbitgirl, Orion-san, spiderweb, EliD, The Demonic Duo, RonMe, KatFay, Dreamseer VeeTee, Vixenette, Understanding Nature, cynical, Shinnyu Kudzu, Juniper James, Rytaku*L, I-Love-Moony, Moondoggy, sapphire11, Neoma, Jubei Yamato, luvthemarauders, SESA, nightpearl, Pestilence GH, reddiej, Lupin's #1Fan, ze love machina, Berri516, Seijaku Rei, no1, cherry13, remus' girl, Potterlvr123, Eizoku, Johnny-Depp-luv, Lunaris, Peanut Gallery, sakura blossoms4, Son of Twilight, Flame Rhiannon, Sherri, Miyamashi, waiwai and esaure who have been supporting me for so long. 

Great thanks also go out also to Allyp, my lovely, loyal beta reader who bore with all my whining when I had that accursed writer's block.

Yours truly,

Majokai Yukiko 

**The Last Chapter Of Cage Will Be Posted Up Online On **

**20th March 2004**


	11. Chapter 9

**Cage | Chapter 9**

**A Harry Potter Fanfiction by Majokai Yukiko**

**Pairing: Remus + Sirius**

**Warning: Pre-slash**

**This is an amateur effort and does not intend to infringe on the rights of J K Rowling, Scholastic Books, and its associates. **

**A/N: Dedicated to Ally for her wonderful ideas and efforts at beta-reading this piece of junk.**

**By the way, this is the last chapter for this arc.  The next arc (or the sequel to this, whatever you want to call it) will begin with the Marauders' Fourth Year.  More slash is to be expected.  **

_Potterlvr123: And I'm writing more right now.  Does that mean I will expect more reviews from you?  *grins*_

_Son of twilight: *blinks* *rereads the last chapter* did Peter do anything that I don't know about?_

_Sherri: The Blacks are dark wizards, basically, and with all the books hanging around the house on the Dark Arts and all, is it really so surprising for Sirius to be terribly well-versed at it?_

---

**Chapter 9: Found Out**

"Face it, Jamie-boy, if you can't keep it down, you can't keep it down."  Sirius looked up from his book and smirked, looking every bit like a snob except for the spot of dust clinging stubbornly on to the tip of his nose. 

James ran his comb through his hair once more time and sighed when it sprang back to its previous messy state. 

"Comb your hair properly," the mirror repeated for the nth time that day. 

"I tried," James whined, slamming the lid heavily onto the almost-empty bottle of wizard hair wax that, his mother had promised him, was sure to work.****

I'm not going to believe her anymore, James secretly thought to himself knowing that all would be forgiven and forgotten the next time she sent him another large tin of homemade toffees. 

"Which girl caught your fancy, James?  Anyone I know?"  Sirius slammed the thick book shut, only to find him coughing from a lungful of dust.  He pushed the book further away from himself, wiping at his watering eyes with one hand and grabbing another book off the stack on his table top with another. 

James dropped his comb in shock and began to cough loudly.  Sirius looked up from his book again; amused grin on his face and pushed his glasses higher up his nose.  (He would never admit to anyone outside of the Marauders that he actually needed glasses for reading purposes.  At least he did not need them for Quidditch, Sirius thought.  As long as he stayed far away from the role of the Seeker, he would be fine.) 

"H-how do you know it's a girl?"  James spluttered, causing his best friend to chortle aloud. 

"No I didn't.  I was just speculating.  But now I do."  The boy gave another nonchalant shrug.

The dormitory door swung open.  Remus walked in with his bag slung casually over one shoulder, Peter following close behind. 

"Evening," Remus greeted cheerfully, and then frowned worriedly when Sirius simply ignored him and began to gather his books into his arms.  "Sirius—" 

"I'm going to the library," Sirius announced and left the dorms.  Remus frowned even deeper when the door was kicked shut.  Didn't Sirius know the library was close by now?  That was the reason why Remus was back in the dormitories anyway. 

***

Damn it, damn it, damn it!  How much stupider could he get?  Sirius thought, finding himself face to face with the big **LOCKED** doors of the Hogwarts library.  He should have known.  It had been Remus' habit to stay in the library until it closed every night.  How could he have forgotten that?  The only reason Remus would return to the dormitories at night was when the library closes.  The dark-haired boy plopped himself onto the cold stone floor, staring resignedly at the books he had dropped earlier and let out a sigh. 

"So, James, are you going to stand there all night and stare at me?  Or are you going to remove your bloody cloak anytime soon?"  Sirius asked suddenly, looking at the big empty space in front of him with a smile. 

Soon, just as he had expected, the air before him rippled and folded, revealing a rough outline of a young boy.  James removed his Invisibility Cloak and sat down on the floor next to his friend, picking up one of the books Sirius. 

He frowned.  "You are reading up on werewolves?" 

Sirius nodded.  He took another book from his stack and flipped through the pages.  Finally finding the one he wanted, he held it out to James.  "Do you remember seeing this mark on Remus' shoulder?" 

James thought about it for a moment, his forehead wrinkled in concentration.  Thankfully, being in a boarding school did not leave much for privacy.  He managed to dredge up a memory where he saw the crescent shaped scar on Remus' left shoulder. 

"Remus is a werewolf."  James jerked back in horror.

"Are you sure?" 

"What else could it be?  Disappearing for a few days every month, the constant fatigue on his face, his allergy to anything silver?"  Sirius pushed.  "And the superhuman speed he had when he saved me from the willow?"  The boy dug into one of the many pockets in his robe and took out a piece of parchment. 

"Have you realized?"  Sirius continued, spreading the parchment across the floor; it was an elaborated moon chart for the past six months, "that Remus' mother always 'fall sick' on a full moon?" 

James leant his head back against the wall, feeling a major headache building up behind his eyes.  "Why didn't he tell us?" 

_I think he tried_, Sirius wanted to say.  But he kept his counsel to himself and instead did some quick calculations mentally.  "The next full moon is tomorrow night."  He gathered his books and got up on his feet.  "Come on, James," Sirius said, holding his hand out to his friend.  "Let's go get Peter." 

***

The next morning, just as Sirius had expected, Remus hid himself under the covers and feigned illness.  This gave the rest of the Marauders time to plan for that night.  When night falls, they were already ready and set for action, waiting in the shadows for Remus to go out of the dormitories. 

Remus stuck his head out in the doorway and waited, his bare feet moving silently across the cold floor.  In the dark, Peter wanted to gasp, after catching sight of Remus' flashing demonic eyes, but was stopped by a well-timed palm smacked over his mouth. 

"Shh!"  Sirius warned, biting anxiously on his lower lip.  He watched Remus tediously make his way down the stairs at the end of the corridor.  Then slowly, he released the smaller boy and turned to gesture at James.  "Hurry," he whispered. 

It was like a dream.  In the semi-darkness, the boys followed their friend through the various secret corridors that they had never known of.  James mentally made a note of where the corridors were, just in case they might come into use some other time.  Remus seemed oblivious of being followed.  Every now and then he would brace himself against the wall, panting heavily.  Even though it was a cold night, his pajamas were drenched with sweat. 

Soon, the boys stood in front of the hidden entrance to a dark tunnel, not knowing where it would lead. 

"Can we just wait for him here?"  Peter asked timidly, only to be replied with a stern look from the other two. 

"We'll wait for a while."  James suggested.  "We won't want him to hear us."     

After they thought they had waited long enough, they entered the tunnel, Sirius and James with a determined look on their face, Peter with a terrified one. 

The tunnel led them into a desolate hut and a half naked Remus with wide fearful gold eyes.  Sirius brushed the dirt off his robes and smiled, in what he hoped to be a reassuring manner. 

"What are you doing here?"  Remus growled, looking out nervously at the soon rising moon. 

"We know what you are—" James tried to explain and then he stopped.  The last thing he recognized of Remus was the expression of utter fear and despair that shook his very core. 

The young brunet screamed as his bones began to break and reform themselves into that of a wolf.  His hair grew at rapid speed while his face lengthened, contorted in pain at the transformation. 

Peter backed himself against the wall, putting the other two boys between him and the monster that was his friend.  James quickly held open the entrance back to the tunnel, back to safety, for the rest. 

"Sirius, we need to go!"

However, Sirius ignored him. The wolf growled in anger at having his territory invaded by humans.  It paced the wooden floor restlessly, threatening to pounce any moment.  Sirius only smiled. 

The dark haired boy squatted down on the dusty floor and held out his hand.  "Come on, you have a name, don't you?"  He said.  Warily, the wolf moved closer.  "Of course you do."

Gently, Sirius placed his hand on the side of the wolf's snout, stroking the full fur.  The wolf snuggled closer. 

"No matter how you look like, you are still my friend, Remus John Lupin."

+++

**End of Cage**

**Coming Soon: Sequel: Apple of Thy Eye**


End file.
